We totally adored our three weeks in Lissenung. We were so much at home it was LIKE being home. We could achieve so much portraying the many aspects of Kavieng’s village and marine life. First was an entire white board dedicated solely to us and our expedition’s objectives for New Ireland. When […]

We set off for a three day exploratory trip with our friend Dietmar Amon with five other divers or NFFs (new found friends) to New Hanover. Lissenung Island Resort has these special trips once a year and again, how lucky were we to be part of this grand annual endeavor?

The strong culture of Papua New Guinea shines through during a sing-sing – a gathering of performers from a village who sing and dance to show off their ethnicity and their traditional rituals. It is powerful, as all earthy performances are and we have been so fortunate to see two performances from Enuk […]

We have been on idyllic Lissenung Island Resort since June 5 and have spent wonderful time catching up with our friends Dietmar and Ange Amon, the owners and operators of this lovely little dive resort in the Pacific. In the past, Dietmar and Ange have house sat for us while we were away […]

The many shoals and sea mounts in Kimbe Bay are popular to many divers in the lookout for sharks, schooling fish in the blue and some tunas passing through. But one type of dive that’s not everyone’s cup of tea and is an acquired […]

Alan Raabe is the well loved captain of one of the world’s best known liveboards. He is Australian and has been operating in Kimbe Bay for the past 17 years running a wonderful boat named FeBrina. It comfortably fits 12 […]

Australians Max and his wife Cecilie were agriculturists when they bought an oil palm plantation in West New Britain, PNG in 1969. The Benjamins’ plantation is an 800 acre property along the western shore of Kimbe Bay. Running through the property is a creek called Walindi in the local language. Avid […]

Many thanks to Tansy Bliss’ text below, we are able to tell you through her writing and Yogi’s photos how brilliant this local NGO is at the heart of Kimbe Bay, West New Britain. Tansy is a naturalist and the Eco-tourism Officer of Mahonia Na Dari.

This is Yogi’s fourth and my third time in Walindi Plantation Resort. Needless to say, we simply adore it here. After diving many great spots in Asia during this expedition, we ask ourselves, do we still love it here? The answer is a resounding YES! And now that we can […]

Testimonials

“What an incredible workshop! I learned so much about wildlife, camera equipment, techniques and postproduction. Yogi is a fantastic teacher and a remarkable human being. His soft spoken but expert coaching improved my photography immensely and this course was as inspirational as it was informative. I will forever have the memories and skills (and let’s not forget photos!) that I picked up during this workshop. Thanks so much for a truly amazing experience.”

Jenna Rumney – Port Douglas, QLD

“This was far and away the best in-the-field photo course I’ve done: dedicated, well prepared instructors and organisers with a great sense of humour whose approach showed real interest in us as individuals, and the group responded accordingly. I’d have no hesitation in recommending others to participate.”

Carol Hall – Ballarat, VIC

“I took Yogi’s photo class with a bunch of friends and family of various different skill levels. Yogi has a lovely, gentle approach to teaching with no ego or B.S. Everyone in the course got something awesome out of it and it was a heap of fun playing with all his toys and gadgets. He was great at explaining complex stuff and made sure no one got left behind.”

Dave Mainwaring – Port Douglas, QLD

“This masterclass was absolutely brilliant and it was obvious that a great deal of planning and preparation had been done prior to the course, making it run extremely smoothly. The locations were amazing with great opportunities for photographing a huge range of wildlife. The skills I developed over the duration of this course have improved my photography immensely. Yogi and Stella are warm friendly people with great patience and knowledge. I thoroughly enjoyed this course and was sorry when i…

Stacey Clark – Bendigo, VIC

“The JCU Nature Photography Masterclass was a wonderful (indeed sublime) experience – a direct result of the effort that Juergen & Stella put into the preparation. Juergen & Stella were the perfect team to lead the Masterclass. Between the two they have just the right blend of enthusiasm, willingness to teach, organisational ability, drive, sense of humour and generosity of spirit. They demonstrated energy and passion during the week with Juergen imparting very generously the technical photogra…

Bruce Terry – Sydney, NSW

“I was inspired to take pictures and to improve my eye for capturing a special moment in nature… The course is so well planned to provide opportunities for that special picture in that special place, and each day we were challenged to apply new techniques to get the shot. Unforgettable and such solid step in my learning experience.”

Chico Birrell – Brisbane, QLD

“An enjoyable and entertaining fun-course of expertly organised subjects and venues, inspired by Yogi’s enthusiasm and generous sharing of his photographic knowledge and experiences. Thanks Yogi, Stella and Tai.”

Annette Corsi – Innisfail, QLD

“I had the best time and learnt so much from both Jürgen and Stella… and the others! And visited a beautiful part of the world I had never been too… what a bonus! Thank you! This will go down in my memories as one of my best holidays EVER!!!”

Chris McKinnon – Tamworth, NSW

“Juergen Freund is a master at his craft and he tailored his response carefully to each of the participant’s personal skills. He never became impatient even with questions that to him must have appeared inane. I personally benefited greatly from his instruction. I would also like to emphasise that Stella was also a pillar of strength and she contributed greatly to the overall success of the program.”

Robert Prettejohn – Cairns, QLD

“Take a small disparate group of individuals, from a variety of geographical and workplace backgrounds; shake gently in a minibus, pour into a variety of magnificent tropical photo venues; add good food, company and accommodation, and you have the starting blocks for Yogi and Stella’s Masterclass in Nature Photography. Some essential didactic advice and suggestion smooths the way for the main focus on individual mentoring and hands on learning. The advantages of digital imaging in allowing trial…